North Berwick driver charged in deadly crash

By JASON CLAFFEY

Thursday

Aug 28, 2008 at 3:15 AMAug 28, 2008 at 10:07 AM

KITTERY POINT, Maine — Concluding an investigation that has lasted nearly two years, North Berwick police last week levied three civil charges against Emily Norton, the North Berwick woman involved in a 2006 car crash that killed a Kittery Point man.

KITTERY POINT, Maine — Concluding an investigation that has lasted nearly two years, North Berwick police last week levied three civil charges against Emily Norton, the North Berwick woman involved in a 2006 car crash that killed a Kittery Point man.

North Berwick Police Chief Stephen Peasley said Norton was issued summonses for possession of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia and operating to the left of the centerline, a traffic violation. All three charges are misdemeanors and punishable by up to a $500 fine. Peasley said Norton voluntarily came into the police station Friday to receive the summonses.

Norton's Saco-based lawyer, Mike Scott, could not be reached by phone and did not return an e-mail message Wednesday.

On Oct. 6, 2006, Norton, then a 21-year-old student at the Maine College of Art, was driving on Route 9 in North Berwick when she said she fell asleep at the wheel of her Toyota RAV4 and drifted into the opposite lane. When she woke up, she said she couldn't swerve in time to avoid colliding with a pickup truck driven by 37-year-old Jay Lawrence. Lawrence was killed almost instantly in the collision. Norton survived, suffering two broken ribs, a sprained foot and lacerations on her knee.

Lawrence's mother, Ruth, said the charges bring closure to her son's death.

"It's been a horrific two years," she said. "The grief that we were going through in losing our son was horrendous."

She said the charges were a "no-brainer" because police found a "usable amount" of marijuana and a glass pipe in Norton's vehicle after the crash. Norton was given a drug test and found not to have the drug in her system.

Ruth Lawrence said she is disappointed it has taken nearly two years for police to levy charges.

"It's something they should have done months ago," she said. "Our family has had to fight tooth and nail to get justice."

Ruth and her husband, Ron, believe Norton should have been issued more serious charges.

North Berwick police, District Attorney Mark Lawrence and Deputy Attorney General William Stokes all reviewed the case and agreed no criminal charges were warranted. Their decision was largely based on an accident reconstruction report compiled by Berwick and North Berwick police that determined the cause of the crash was Norton falling asleep — and not, as one witness said, an attempt by her to pass a line of cars in front of her. Stokes wrote in a letter to the Lawrence family that the witness statement was impossible to verify and would probably not hold up in court.

Norton did, however, have her license suspended for six months after the state's Bureau of Motor Vehicles reviewed the case.

The Lawrences are also frustrated that police withheld the fact that Norton had marijuana in her car. They didn't find out about that until Stokes wrote them a letter in June of this year.

"You should not have to push the legal system to do the job that they're (supposed) to do," Ruth Lawrence said.

She said North Berwick police didn't contact her or the family's attorney on Friday when Norton received her summonses.

When they realized no criminal charges were likely, the Lawrences contacted Rep. Walt Wheeler, D-Kittery, to push for harsher laws for drivers involved in fatal accidents. The result was the successful passing of Legislative Document 1948, which gives the Secretary of State the authority to issue three-year license suspensions to drivers involved in fatal accidents. The law went into effect June 30.

The Lawrences said they have not ruled out pursuing a wrongful-death lawsuit against Norton.

District Attorney Mark Lawrence could not be reached Wednesday to comment on the civil charges. Peasley said charges were based on consultations with his department and Lawrence.

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